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Photo: Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds forward and 2014 prospect Jared McCann is ranked 10th among North American skaters in Central Scouting’s final rankings for the 2014 NHL Draft (courtesy of Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

Winning gold was the goal for Team Canada at the 2014 IIHF U18 World Championship, but the defending gold medalists instead had to settle for bronze this time around. Canada defeated Sweden 3-1 to take the bronze medal game in Lappeenranta, Finland, a game in which the Canadians were outshot by the Swedes, 39-26.

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Photo: Owen Sound Attack defenseman and 2014 prospect Damir Sharipzyanov played for the Reaktor Nizhnekamsk club in the MHL in 2012-13 before moving to North America for the 2013-14 season (courtesy of Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

Although Russia suffered just one overtime loss in the preliminary round of the 2014 IIHF U18 World Championship, their eight points only tied them for second with Sweden in Group A, two points behind Canada.

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Photo: Plymouth Whalers goaltender and 2014 prospect Alex Nedeljkovic followed up a season where he was named the OHL First Team goaltender by winning the OHL Goaltender of the Year award in 2013-14 (courtesy of Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

Two of Team USA's five wins at the 2014 IIHF U18 World Championship have been shutouts. The first shutout, a 3-0 win over the Czech Republic, was posted by starting netminder Alex Nedeljkovic, while backup Edwin Minney got the win in a 7-0 victory over Denmark.

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Photo: Team Russia forward Yevgeni Svechnikov (L), shown here competing at last year’s U18 tournament, has been the top offensive player for Russia at the 2014 U18 World Championship (courtesy of ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP/Getty Images)

The preliminary round of the 2014 IIHF U18 World Championship is over and the playoff match-ups are set. Despite the odd surprise performances to start off the tournament, the teams have finished off group play in a manner conducive with most expectations coming in. Take a look at who’s up against whom in the playoffs and who you should expect to move on to the next round.

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Photo: Ottawa 67’s forward and 2015 prospect Travis Konecny was named OHL Rookie of the Month four times in 2013-14 on his way to being named the OHL’s Rookie of the Year (courtesy of Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

Forward Travis Konecny is one of a handful of Team Canada youngsters getting a taste of IIHF U18 World Championship action at an earlier age than might normally be the case. While many of the players taking part in this tournament are in their draft year, Konecny won't be eligible for the draft until the 2014-15 season.